Clear Lake Hitch is a subspecies of a California native minnow that only exists in Clear Lake... endangered species

[WB Staff]

From CDFW

An adult Clear Lake Hitch. CDFW photo by Environmental Scientist Isaac Chellman.

The Clear Lake Hitch is a subspecies of a California native minnow that only exists in Clear Lake in Lake County. The species was recently listed under the California Endangered Species Act as Threatened. A multiagency Conservation Strategy Team was formed to determine potential actions that could help recover the species and potentially lead to a delisting. One of the first actions proposed by the team was to get an accurate baseline population estimate so they could determine if restoration and other recovery activities are making an improvement at the population level. Starting in March and proceeding weekly until the end of May, CDFW fisheries scientists will be performing a mark recapture study on Clear Lake using electrofishing boats to capture Clear Lake Hitch. Once captured, the fish are marked with a fin clip, then released. A second effort (recapture) will take place several weeks later. The scientists will then use a mathematical model to compare the number of previously captured marked fish to the number of newly captured unmarked fish, in order to estimate the total Clear Lake Hitch population.

[birdman920]

They shoulda went up Adobe creek ‘ a month ago !.... you could walk across the Hitch spawning !....

[185vsfrog]

I can see where this is going.......

[ash]

I can see where this is going.......

I can see where this is going.......

YUP - pretty much any species that only has one place to live is endangered - but listing it will definitely bring up the predation of hitch from LMB - (not blocking the creeks or lack of rainfall, high toxic alge from too much nitrogen, or silting from houses -

Pay attention to this one Anglers - This could go a BAD way against fishing Clear Lake - we need to be on point with this.

[Addicted Fisherman]

Where is it going?

[DDG]

arnt there hitch in the other lakes surrounding Clear Lake? why dont they just introduce them to other lakes.

[hydro]

From what I have read 2 of the first bodies of water where Largemouth bass were first introduced to in California were the Delta and Clear lake in the late 1800's brought out west in tanks cars via railroad . Bass and the native species inhabiting these waters have coexisted over a hundred years without issue. Now all of a sudden tree huggers and their misguided political allies want to scapegoat non-native species for any declines of endangered species instead of the true culprits
water diversions , dams , and pollution.